HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1974-09-25, Page 2Sugar and Spice
By Bill Smiley
Brussels Post PISOTAI82;t
SEPTEMBER 25,1974,
BRUSSELS
ONTARIO.
4
Serving Brussels and the surrounding community.
Published each Wednesday afternoon at Brussels, Ontario
by McLean Bros, Publishers, Limited.
Evelyn Kennedy - Editor Tom Haley - Advertising
Member Canadian Community Newspaper Association and
Ontario Weekly Newspaper Association.
Subscriptions (in advance) Canada $6.00 a year, Others
fpNA.
7111, •
$8.00 a year, Single Copies 15 cents each.
Second class mail Registration No. 0562.
Telephone 887-6641.
The worst at the top
The Richard Nixon era may be finished in the
United States, but the memories of the various
capers and cover-ups will continue, we feel, for a
long time to come.
One of the things which impressed everyone
favorably during the year of Watergate was the high
calibre of many of the men in the U.S.Senate and
Congress as well as the Justices. From Sam Erwin to
Peter Rodino no one could help but feel that here
were men of sterling character with unflinching high
moral standards - so very unlike many of the persons
in government who had been named and appointed
to the very top positions.
A recent United Church Observer has a significant
editorial comment to make in this regard when it
says:
"How impressive are so many of their senators
and congressmen and counsellors! But how can it
happen, we wonder, that among so many with great
potential and character such mediocre men arrive at
the top. Just think of it: Spiro Agnew for five years a
heart-beat and a breath away from the most powerful
office in the western world. His reputation was
known by many, yet there he was, elected to the
vice-presidency for a second term. And a year ago
predicted as Nixon's successor.
And Richard Nixon who won his "tricky Dickie"
title for good reason early in the McCarthy era. It
was all there then. But twice the American people
voted him president.
A few months ago some highly-placed Americans
were predicting that John Connally would be the
next Republican nominee for president. And many
Democrats rub their hands with anticipation that
Senator Edward Kennedy may be their man for '76.
Just what 'does Senator Kennedy have, we ask,
that recommends him for the presidency except
ambition and the Kennedy n ame?
There must be a million Republicans, and a million
Democrats, maybe many millions, with greater
ability, finer education, higher academic
qualifications, of good character and unblemished
reputation who will never have a chance at high
off ice.What is-this demonic influence in democracy
that so often sends the cream to the bottom and the
dregs to the top?
Many of the so-called free world are quick to
condemn the juntas and the military coups, one party
demo cracies and benevolent dictatorships, of Asia,
Africa and South America. But it should be known
their people don't covet Our freedom with its murky
politics, in which little men climb to the top
destroying better men on their way."
(St. Marys Journal Advocate)
"A witch. caret, be -forced td testify agaihst her
husband,.. but *hat if she NVaitt§ toi
UERIFRIO
CIRCULATION
Autumn scene
I've just finished a book called "Ten Lost
Years", In my opinion, it should be
required reading for every Canadian under
twenty-five, and pleasantly, if occasionally
bitter reading, for everyone over fifty. The
rest are too old to care, and too late to save.
With another depression coming up, and
remember, you read it here, it might serve
as some sort of survival chart for the young
people heading into the next depression,
and a justification for the older people, who
arc so hymie about such things as electric
lights that aren't turned off, food scraps
that arc thrown out, and clothing that is
perfectly good, but ten years out of style.
It's impossible to tell young people about
your own experiences in the Great
Depression. And it deserves the capital
letters.
When you try to tell the rising
generation about your own Depression
experiences, they merely groan, roll their
eyes, and think, "Yuk. Here goes Dad, or
Grandad, again, whining about what hard
times are really like. What a drag!"
That's why the young people should read
the book. They simply can't realize, as they
scoff their two-bits worth of french fries,
that grown men worked ten hours a day for ir
that same two-bits, during the Depression.
They can't realize, as they shoot a
quarter into the pop machine for a Coke
(capital C) to wash down their french 'fries,
that if you took a girl out during the
Depression. and had a quarter in your
pocket, you were, rich.
According to the book , the hardest hit
areas were the Prairie Provinces, the
Maritimes and Quebec. Ontario and B.C.
were the only provinces in those days
which weren't in really desperate
condition, and they were bad enough.
This is a very credible book, to anyone
who lived through those Ten Lost Years,
The author went out with a tape recorder
vand interviewed hundreds of people who
went through them, The results are funny,
tragic, and extremely Canadian. It could
never be misunderstood as a British or
American book, though these countries
suffered equally.
Canadians then:, in their pawkish,
Stubborn and often stupid pride; would go
to almost any lengths to avoid "going on
relief." This Was almost a Sin, and always a
last resort. And "relief" could be ten, or
twelve dollars a month, for a -family, A
nickel had to do the work of a dollar,
After three years of drought and
grasshoppers, Many prairie farmers just
walked away and left everything; house
and machinery. The average cash income
from farmers in the Maritimes, including
the wealthy ones was something like forty
dollars a year,: What a modern kid would
spend in a With on ckithCS °Mid trelit§.
People died, not of starvation, but of
malnutrition.
Oh, I remember! I was only a kid at the
time, but I remember. It all happened sort
of gradually. My father was a fairly
prosperous merchant, but he was too
kindly a man, bless him, to crunch people
who were haid up. He gave them credit.
He lost his business. He had too much
money on the books and not enough in the
till to mee,t the mortgage.
Stunnell, in his late forties with five kids,
he sank into depression. There were no
jobs for anyone, let alone middle-aged
men. My mother took over.
She took in boarders. In the summer, we
rented rooms to tourists. A clean bed and a
huge breakfast for $1.50. She sold
homemade baking. She was an Avon lady.
And we went inexorably into debt; the
butcher's, the grocer's, the coal man. But
there was no way WE were going to go on
relief. It was shameful.
Somehow, we staggered through. My
older brother got a job in the bank at six
dollars a week, My sister got a job in a
store at eight dollars a week. They kicked
most of it back to my mum. That was the
deal in those days, everybody pulling
together. But it was mighty hard on the
young workers, who, today, would be
going to college on government grants.
We never went hungry. A lot of
hanibur ger, at three pounds for a quarter.
A lot of baloney. A big, perpetually
simmering pot of soup. If the porridge
twhaosnso'tup
pot.
finished in the morning, it went into
And I remember the odd time when we
had something I've never tasted since.
This was when the butcher would advance
do more credit,potaaton-skdtiri hash.heresn't a cent in
theh
I wouldn't mind a good feed of that
tonight. You take some baked potatoes and
put them through the meat grinder, With
the colour of the potato skins, it tOIT1OS but
looking like meat and potatoes. Fry it up in
a patt with some onions, dirt cheap, and
you had a pretty good dinner. Top it off
Ndviinthner h. cime-rfiade bread and raspberry
preserves, and you'd had a gourmet
It beat hell out of the modem frozen TV
dinner, bOth for nourishment and flavour,
and was probably better for us than 'roost °`
the garbage modern kids eat.
NO, we never went hungry, and there
was always a bowl of pea soup and
home-made bread for the hoboes vn'll°,
hd arrivedal
hal f-starved:
ravt l kitchen door, half-frozen an°
Bu- I never realized what miracles olY
perfainea in in de
mother and father t hose mother
'Wish 4l had ;. Sooner,